Leeds ace makes ‘stupid’ claim as Wayne Rooney sack news emerges at Plymouth
Leeds loanee Darko Gyabi has urged people not to panic about Plymouth’s league position amid mounting pressure on manager Wayne Rooney.
Plymouth drew 3-3 with high-flying Middlesbrough at the weekend but they remain rooted to the bottom of the Championship and The Sun reported on Monday (page 11 of pull-out, 23 December) that Rooney could be the next second-tier manager to be sacked.
Rooney’s reportedly managed to impress with performances but results have lacked and Argyle could follow in the footsteps of Oxford United, who are level on points in 23rd but opted to sack Des Buckingham last week.
Gyabi, who is on a season-long loan at Home Park from Leeds, seems to be behind his manager and has tried to allay any concerns in the Plymouth fanbase.
“I think we have still got so many more games left. It would be stupid to look at the table now and start panicking. So forget about the table at the moment, it’s just making sure every day what we are doing we are improving and the wins are going to come,” said Gyabi, as quoted by PlymouthLive on 23 December.
“I think what we just need to do is stay positive, keep believing in each other, keep believing in the plan the manager has got and I feel like everything will fall in place. We just need to make sure we are doing the right things.”
Will Leeds recall Gyabi from Plymouth in January?
Despite only being 20 years old, Gyabi comes across as a man who’s mature beyond his years.
The central midfielder has been ever-present for Plymouth this season and managed to score his first goal in senior football at the weekend in their 3-3 draw against Middlesbrough.
His comments after that six-goal thriller are also impressive because he clearly knows what’s going on outside of Plymouth’s training ground and dressing room – he’s aware of the noise.
But he hasn’t shied away from it and has given his side’s supporters a reason to get behind Rooney and trust that he can turn things around in the South-West.
Unfortunately for Argyle, Gyabi is only a temporary player of theirs.
Leeds can recall the former Manchester City midfielder in the first week of the January transfer window.
As quoted by PlymouthLive on 5 December, the Pilgrims’ director of football Neil Dewsnip revealed the small-print tied into Leeds’ recall clause for the midfielder.
As it stands, it seems unlikely that Leeds will terminate their loan agreement with the Championship strugglers but a couple of injuries in Farke’s first team could force his hand.
In other Leeds United news, this Joe Rothwell incident has been described as “horrible”.
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